Thieves tunnel into Milan jewellery shop

THIEVES who dug an underground tunnel to a Milan showroom have stolen several million euro worth of jewellery.

Seven men dressed as police came through the cellar wall, tied up staff and made off with some of Damiani’s most valuable pieces in minutes.

Before Sunday’s heist, they had dug for several weeks from a building under construction next door.

Luckily for the showroom, some of its most valuable pieces were on display at the Oscars ceremony in Los Angeles.

Undisturbed, the thieves dug a 1-metre tunnel into the cellar of the jeweller’s showroom.

The seven men, unarmed and unmasked, came through the wall as staff above them prepared the jewels for a celebrity Oscars party.

The thieves tied the staff up with plastic cable and sticky tape.

They then locked everyone in the bathroom except the manager, who was taken to the safety deposit room and forced to empty the lockers.

It is reported that Damiani had supplied the diamond-studded bracelet worn by British actress Tilda Swinton, who took the Oscar for best supporting actress at the Academy Awards ceremony on Sunday.

Although some of the showroom’s jewellery was gracing the red carpet thousands of miles away, there was nonetheless plenty left in Milan.

The real value of the pieces stolen is not yet known as a list is still being compiled, but they are thought to be worth millions of euro.